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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 17, 2017)
eclipse news august17 2017 Viewing the Eclipse in the Backcountry Whether you choose to watch the eclipse from an iconic National Park or a lesser known (and just as beautiful) public land, these tips will help you have a safe and memorable ex- perience while respecting your public lands: • It is NEVER safe to look at the sun during the eclipse. Except during the very short period of totality, do not look directly at the sun without approved solar- viewing devices. • Get your maps. Some public lands are remote areas along un- maintained roads and are often in- ter-mingled with private land, so know where you’re going. Con- tact your local Bureau of Land Management, National Park Ser- vice, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Ser- vice, or Forest Service offices for camping and jurisdiction maps. Before you head out, make sure you are familiar with the area you are going to and ensure you have appropriate gear, equipment, and supplies. • Use designated spots for camp- ing. While most campgrounds are already booked, there are some locations that offer first come, first serve campsites. Remember: whether in a developed camp- ground or at a dispersed site, you can usually camp in an area for up to 14 days. Learn more about camping guidelines. • Don’t forget your eclipse glass- es. You’ll be able to buy eclipse glasses at some public land visi- tor centers, but to ensure you have them for viewing, it’s best to purchase them before leaving home. Learn more about pro- 17 Drive Safely During the Eclipse tecting your eyes during a solar eclipse. • Please use designated routes and trails. Going off road dis- turbs wildlife and habitat and in dry conditions can spark a fire. • Bring plenty of water. It can get hot during the summer, and wa- ter can be limited. Always carry at least one gallon of water for every person in your group. • Pack the sunscreen. Even though this event is about the sun’s rays being blocked out, you’ll prob- ably spend some time waiting in the sun. Protect yourself. • Remember to pack it in, pack it out. Remove all trash (includ- ing your viewing glasses and any food scraps like apple cores). • Know the fire risks and respect fire restrictions. August is peak wildfire season for public lands, and a small spark can rapidly become a large fire. Be sure to properly put out campfires, and in many areas, vehicles are re- quired to have a shovel and fire extinguisher or a gallon of water. • Be patient and don’t expect all services to be available. Many small towns within the path of the eclipse expect their infrastructure and community services to be stretched to the limit during the event. Be early and patient and expect traffic on rural roads. • Don’t expect cell-phone recep- tion as it is already spotty in rural areas and may be overtaxed by the high number of users. Information provided by Co- lumbia County Emergency Management and the Vernonia Rural Fire Protection District. ODOT expects many Oregon highways to be very crowded in the days around the August 21 total solar eclipse. Many crashes are the result of distracted driving and traveling too fast for conditions. So we’re encouraging you to Drive Safely: Keep your hands on the wheel, your mind on the task, and your eyes on the road - not on the sky. It also means you must plan your travel well in advance. Because of the expected large crowds, please treat the 3-hour eclipse as a 3-DAY event: Arrive early, stay put and leave late. • Showing up Monday morning is too late: You could be in a long traffic jam; you could still be on the highway when the eclipse occurs. • Trying to leave immediately after the eclipse is too early: That could put you into another long traffic jam - perhaps one of cosmic proportions. • Can you travel with others? Carpool! Visit www.drivelessconnect.com/2017- eclipse/ for more information. • Move over before you pass a vehicle on the side of the road that is displaying warning lights, if you can. If you cannot safely move over, or you’re on a two-lane road, you must slow down to at least five mph under the speed limit before you pass by. • The shoulder is for emergency stopping, not parking - and not eclipse viewing. Blocking the shoulder could keep emergency vehicles from reaching victims. In the days leading up to the eclipse, ODOT will have crews posted along critical travel routes to keep motorists safe, and will be providing travel updates via www.Tripcheck. com and 511 so you can be prepared with the most current travel information available. Trip- Check’s speed map has been enhanced: you can now see how fast (or slow) traffic is moving on all city, county and state roads in Oregon. Plan to have a good time in Oregon viewing the eclipse. Plan ahead, so you will. TripCheck Launches Speed Map Data shows how traffic is flowing around the state – just in time for the eclipse In an update to Oregon’s traffic and road conditions website, TripCheck, motorists can now see how fast (or slow) traffic is moving on nearly all roads across Oregon. Previously, this feature was only available in the Portland metro area and was called the Portland Speed Map. Now, a new statewide layer of data is using near real-time traffic congestion information to reflect movement on roadways throughout Oregon. ODOT has partnered with Esri/ HERE to provide the traffic data. When you visit TripCheck.com, simply zoom in to see the traffic flow on the various roads. Traffic is displayed as a percentage of free-flow speeds (frequently the speed limit or more practically, how fast cars tend to travel when unencumbered by other vehicles). The streets are color-coded as follows: • Green (fast): 85 - 100% of free-flow speeds • Yellow (moderate): 65 - 85% • Orange (slow): 45 - 65% • Red (stop and go): 0 - 45% When you are on the website, to see what the colors mean, click on the Live Traffic drop down menu on the left. There, you’ll also see another significant enhancement to TripCheck: the interactive map legend. The map layer controls are now integrated with the legend, simplifying the layout and providing a cleaner mobile experience. You can click on layers such as Waze Traffic to add or remove information. TripCheck will receive another update later this year with a freshened interface for searching text reports. This update will allow users to create custom queries to search for incidents, weather, cameras and more based on their criteria. Bridge Street Bits filled the position that was originally going to be represented by her mother Penny Dean, REMEMBER to stop by or call our local library Thanks Tobie Finzel for stepping in for whom the Senior Board and community for information on book deliveries for those writing this column when circumstances find wishes to express our sincere condolences on who cannot get out or have no transportation. me away from the computer. her passing. It’s a great service! TAKE NOTE: Even though “Bargains on Bridge FOOTCARE SERVICES are available at the Street Thrift Store” is now closed on Mondays, FIVE AREA LUNCH is at Clatskanie Center this Health Center. This is one of the more month, the LAST Monday of August, on the due to staffing, the meal certificates will popular services we offered at our senior continue to be issued through the senior office 28 th . Some months from now the Vernonia center building in the past, done so efficiently Senior Center will be back once again hosting in the same building as the store on the first by Marilyn Albro. Call Joyce Jossi, RN at her one of the 5-Area Lunches! (Rainier, Clatskanie, and second Monday of each month. Please number to schedule an appointment and St. Helens, Scappoose, Vernonia ) Exciting days enter by way of the side patio door, between leave a message. (503) 753-7745. are on the horizon! 10 am and noon. SENIOR SIGN OFF: Service is nothing but love MANY OF US had a most wonderful day at the THE VERNONIA THRIFT STORE is in need of in work clothes. THANK YOU to our volunteer Columbia County Fair. The band that played volunteers. If this seems like something you Board Members who meet once a month to on the stage that day played 50s and 60s might be interested in, your help would make decisions and discuss ways to propel our music and Pat Ray and I loved it, although I be very appreciated. Background check is future Senior Center on to becoming a reality. required, at NO cost to you. Come in and see couldn’t get anyone to get up and do the twist Stay tuned and travel along with us on this with me. At some point a couple of senior store manager Pam. journey. All member voices welcomed at our ladies popped up but not one senior gent… FOR DIAL-A-RIDE SERVICES and info call monthly meetings: Next up: SEPTEMBER 8 takes some of us gals to break the ice, huh? CC Rider Dispatch at (503) 366-0159. This 10:00 am at the American Legion Hall. A BIG SHOUT OUT TO TINA BREWINGTON is the number on their website: www. Call me with any questions and concerns: (503) who so capably represented Vernonia in columbiacountyrider.com 429-0273. July at the Columbia County Fair as Vernonia I KNOW some of you are taking advantage See ya’ around town... Princess in the My Fair Lady contest. Tina of senior meals at a reduced rate: Check out By Karen Miller Mariolino’s, Black Iron Grill, and Blue House. Vernonia Senior Center • 939 Bridge Street • (503) 429-3912